Tesla CEO Elon Musk hinted at the possibility of the company’s humanoid robot, Optimus, being available for sale externally by the end of 2025.
During Tesla’s first-quarter conference call on Tuesday, Musk was asked about the current status of Optimus and when mass production is expected to commence. In response, the entrepreneur revealed that the company is making significant progress with Optimus and anticipates limited production to begin by the end of 2024, with external sales potentially starting by the end of 2025.
“We are able to do simple factory tasks or at least, I should say, factory tasks in the lab. We do think we will have Optimus in limited production in the natural factory itself, doing useful tasks before the end of this year. And then I think we may be able to sell it externally by the end of next year. These are just guesses,” Musk said during the call.
The Tesla CEO also highlighted the potential significance of Optimus, stating, “I think Optimus will be more valuable than everything else combined. Because if you’ve got a sentient humanoid robots that is able to navigate reality and do tasks at request, there is no meaningful limit to the size of the economy.”
This announcement comes on the heels of Tesla’s first-quarter financial results, which showed a 9% year-over-year decrease in revenue, missing the Street consensus estimate, according to data from Benzinga Pro. The company stated that revenue was affected by decreased average selling prices and reduced vehicle deliveries during the quarter.
Meanwhile, last month Musk spoke about the cost efficiency of manufacturing Optimus, stating that it costs the company only half as much as making a car. At the time, Musk verified to a user on X, formerly Twitter, that initially, the Optimus will be priced between $25,000 and $30,000, with subsequent reductions over time.
